KOREA In the peninsula of Korea, as in Eastern Asia generally, the mountains tend to run parallel to the coast line. In the north, where they are a continuation of those of eastern Manchuria, they cut across the peninsula, but further south they form an axis to it and divide it into two slopes, an eastern and a western. On the east they present a steep escarpment to the sea fiom which they are separated by a narrow coastal plain, but on the west the slope is more gradual, the rivers are larger, and there are numerous valleys which contain much fertile soil. It is on the west accordingly that the bulk of the population is found. Climatic conditions are somewhat more favourable than in corresponding latitudes on the mainland, the winters being milder and the summers cooler. The rainfall occurs in the summer and is greater on the east coast than on the west.
The principal crops are rice, beans, barley, and wheat, and attempts, apparently successful, are being made to develop cotton growing and sericulture. Ginseng is abundant and its sale is a
profitable government monopoly. The minerals include gold, iron, coal, and copper, but with few exceptions they have hitherto been worked in a most primitive fashion. Manufactures, which are of little importance, are mainly concerned with the supply of local needs. The communications of the country are bad. The principal railway is that which runs from Fusan to Antung with branches to Seoul and Chemulpo. The exports include rice, beans, hides, and ginseng, while cotton and silk goods, oil, and metals are the principal imports. Fusan and Chemulpo are the chief ports.
The Koreans display little energy either in political or economic matters, and have usually been dependent on one or other of their neighbours. Their country was annexed by Japan in 1910, and may for all practical purposes be regarded as part of the Island Empire.